Getting Hired and Standing Out at Work With Ben Brooks

MY CONVERSATION WITH BEN BROOKS FOCUSES ON HOW TO CREATE OPPORTUNITY, PROVE HUNGER, AND BECOME THE PERSON A BOSS WOULD FIGHT TO KEEP. IN THIS EPISODE, BEN SHARES SPECIFIC LESSONS FROM MERIT-BASED ENVIRONMENTS, CAREER PIVOTS, AND THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN BEING TECHNICALLY GOOD AND BEING PROMOTABLE. HE ALSO EXPLAINS WHY CLARITY, ATTITUDE, AND VISIBLE INITIATIVE MATTER MORE THAN POLISHED RESUMES. TIMESTAMPS 00:19 - GROWING UP IN AUSTIN AND NORTHERN COLORADO 02:26 - FIRST JOBS AND THE PULL OF CORPORATE LIFE 03:49 - WHY ENTERPRISE WAS A POWERFUL FIRST INTERNSHIP 04:19 - MERITOCRACY, METRICS, AND BRANCH RANKINGS 06:24 - SALES TRAINING THROUGH RENTAL-CAR DISCOVERY 07:57 - HANDLING CUSTOMER FRUSTRATION AND OPERATIONAL FAILURES 09:49 - WHY FIRST JOBS SHAPE EXECUTIVE INSTINCTS 10:36 - LOSING A DREAM JOB AND REGROUPING AFTER GRADUATION 11:31 - HOW A PROFESSOR AND ALUM HELPED HIM LAND AT LOCKHEED 12:27 - SECURITY CLEARANCE, CLASSIFIED WORK, AND A ROUGH START 13:55 - LEARNING CONTRACTS, VENDOR MANAGEMENT, AND LEAN SIX SIGMA 16:32 - WHY THE GOVERNMENT PROGRAM EVENTUALLY COLLAPSED 18:07 - MENTORSHIP, VARIETY, AND DECIDING TO LEAVE LOCKHEED 20:00 - CHOOSING CONSULTING OVER A LONGER CORPORATE PATH 21:42 - FINDING MERCER THROUGH INDUSTRY CURIOSITY AND A BOLD TARGET 23:33 - WRITING A DIRECT PITCH TO A GROUP PRESIDENT 24:58 - THE FEDEX PACKAGE AND AN UNEXPECTED RESPONSE 26:14 - WHY SPECIFICITY AND VALUE MATTER IN NETWORKING 27:09 - HUSTLE, ANXIETY, AND BEING COMMITTED WITHOUT BEING ATTACHED 28:52 - “YOU’RE GOING TO GET WHAT YOU WORK FOR” 30:27 - EVIDENCE OF HUNGER VERSUS VAGUE AMBITION 32:28 - REJECTION, EXPERIMENTATION, AND BUILDING ENOUGH SURFACE AREA FOR LUCK 35:29 - THRESHOLD SKILLS VERSUS DIFFERENTIATING BEHAVIORS 37:26 - SURVIVING THE FINANCIAL CRISIS AND PITCHING INTERNAL CHANGE 38:26 - CO-FOUNDING AN LGBT EMPLOYEE RESOURCE GROUP 39:22 - A ONE-SLIDE PITCH THAT LED TO AN EXECUTIVE RESPONSE IN MINUTES 40:48 - LANDING AN HR ROTATION AND LATER BECOMING AN HR EXECUTIVE 42:50 - THE BIGGEST GUT-PUNCH MISTAKE: CHOOSING FUN OVER IMPORTANCE 43:34 - DOING THE UGLY WORK THAT REMOVES PRESSURE FROM YOUR BOSS 45:11 - THE IDEA OF BEING SOMEONE YOUR MANAGER WOULD FIGHT TO KEEP 46:31 - A SIMPLE QUESTION THAT CHANGED MANAGER RELATIONSHIPS 47:38 - WHAT EXECUTIVES REALLY NOTICE IN PROMOTION DECISIONS 48:37 - WHY EMOTIONAL REGULATION MATTERS AS YOU MOVE UP 50:45 - BOOK RECOMMENDATION: FOUR THOUSAND WEEKS 53:20 - CLARITY ON WHAT YOU WANT AND HOW TO GET IT KEY TAKEAWAYS Be specific about what you want in your career Show evidence of hunger through actions, not just words Ask your boss what is keeping them up at night Take on the ugly work, not just the visible or fun work Build relationships before you need them Use rejection as a signal that you are actually trying LINKS & RESOURCES CONNECT WITH BEN ON   / benbrooksny   What Color Is Your Parachute Book https://amzn.to/4dpkcXw  Four Thousand Weeks Book https://amzn.to/4gU9d9u  #Networking #CareerAdvice #Leadership #PersonalBranding #Promotion 🎙️ Subscribe for more career growth & leadership insights!